Steel Structure in Industrial Steel Buildings
What is an industrial steel structure building? Industrial steel structure buildings refer to factory workshops and warehouses constructed primarily using steel (such as structural steel sections and steel plates) as the main load-bearing structural material. Their main structure consists of steel columns, steel beams, steel trusses, and other components connected by welding or bolting. They are characterized by high strength, rapid construction, and high flexibility, and are widely used in manufacturing, logistics, warehousing, energy, and chemical industries.
Why use Steel structures for Industrial buildings？ Steel structures offer high fire resistance and strong corrosion resistance. Industrial steel structure warehouses are typically composed of steel beams, steel columns, and steel trusses, with each component connected by welding, bolts, or rivets. Applications include large factories, warehouses, supermarkets, entertainment centers, and modular steel structure garages.
What AGICO offers: AGICO is a steel structure building project expert that integrates design, R&D, manufacturing, and construction of industrial steel buildings. We have also obtained ISO 9001:2008 international quality management system certification and SGS factory system certification. Industrial building steel structures include: manufacturing plants, warehouses for storage and processing workshops, garages, aircraft hangars, and steel work platforms.
Contact AGICO now if you need to build a steel structure factory or warehouse!
Prefabricated Industrial Steel Building Solutions
Steel Industrial Building Types: AGICO offers tailored fabrication of steel structure members for prefabricated steel structure factory, steel structure workshops, warehouses and other steel facilities, such as machinery processing workshops, automobile manufacturing workshops, and electronic and electrical production factories, which require large open spaces and large spans of factory buildings. It is mostly used in warehousing and logistics to meet the needs of goods storage and rapid turnover. It is a common option in some temporary factory construction projects with tight construction period requirements.
Steel Workshop Building
Steel workshop buildings are a common type of industrial building structure, typically composed of steel and welded components. Based on different design requirements and structural characteristics, steel structure workshops can be categorized into the following types:
- Portal Steel Structure Factory: Portal steel structure factory buildings are a common type, and their portal frame structure can provide greater space and flexibility. This structure typically consists of two parallel columns and two beams perpendicular to them, forming a “portal” shape.
- Framed Steel Structure Factory: A framed steel structure factory building is a simple structural form, consisting of a series of horizontal and vertical frames, typically made of steel. This structure offers flexible space and is suitable for factories and workshops requiring a large area.
- Cable-stayed steel structure factory: Cable-stayed steel structure factory buildings are a lightweight structural form whose roof is supported by a series of suspension cables that are connected to columns on the sides or around the factory building. This structure can provide large spaces and spans, making it suitable for large factories and warehouses.
Steel Structure Work Platform
There are many types of platform structures for prefabricated steel structure factory buildings. Their most notable feature is that they are fully prefabricated and assembled steel structures with flexible design. They can be designed and manufactured according to different site conditions to meet on‑site requirements, fulfill their functions, and satisfy logistics needs.
Steel Work Platform Structure and Type
A steel structure platform typically consists of floor plates, primary and secondary beams, columns, inter‑column bracing, as well as ladders, handrails, etc. It can be classified as indoor or outdoor platforms; platforms subjected to static loads or dynamic loads; production auxiliary platforms; and medium‑duty or heavy‑duty operating platforms, etc.
Steel Structure Warehouses
A prefabricated steel structure warehouse is a pre-designed steel structure widely used in large factories, warehouses, supermarkets, entertainment centers, and other buildings. Steel structure warehouses feature high fire resistance and strong corrosion resistance. An industrial steel-structure warehouse typically consists of steel beams, steel columns, steel trusses, and other components, with parts connected by welding, bolts, or rivets. Its applications include large workshops, warehouses, supermarkets, entertainment centers, and modular steel-structure garages.
AGICO manufactures 4 types of prefabricated steel warehouses: cost-effective standard portal frame warehouses; long-span steel truss warehouses with fewer columns; ultra-large span space frame warehouses; multi-story warehouses for urban logistics. Here are the details:
Steel Structure Warehouse Designs
Portal Frame Warehouse Structure
- Steel columns & rafters (rigid frame)
- Purlins and wall girts
- Bracing system
- Roof & wall cladding
Steel Truss Warehouse Structure
- Steel columns
- Roof truss system
- Secondary members (purlins, bracing)
- Cladding system
Space Frame Warehouse Structure
- 3D space frame grid (ball joints)
- Steel supports or columns
- Roofing system (metal panels or membrane)
Multi-Story Warehouse Structure
- Steel frame (beams & columns)
- Floor decking systems
- Bracing or rigid connections
- Vertical transportation (lifts)
Industrial Building Steel Structural Components
The steel structual components of industrial buildings include load-bearing framework parts, roof and wall materials, and customized heavy steel structure members (crane beams, ect.). All steel structure members must comply with the “Steel Structure Design Standard” and seismic design code to avoid structural instability. The quality of node connections (welding/bolting) directly affects safety and requires strict testing.
- Load-Bearing Framework: The load-bearing framework is the primary structure, which consists of various steel columns, steel beams, steel trusses, etc., and secondary structures of purlins, girts and bracing. These steel components are usually formed through processing techniques such as rolling, welding, and bolting to form a stable frame system that bears the vertical and horizontal loads of the roof, walls, internal equipment, and goods.
- Roof and Walls: The roof and walls are mostly made of lightweight materials such as color steel plates and sandwich panels, which are fixed to the load-bearing structure by self-tapping screws and other connectors. This not only effectively protects the factory space and provides shelter from wind and rain and heat insulation (sandwich panels have this function), but also reduces the overall structural burden due to their light weight.
Anti-corrosion and Fireproofing Treatment
- Steel materials need to be coated with anti-corrosion coatings (such as galvanizing or epoxy resin), and stronger protection is required in humid southern regions.
- Fire prevention can be achieved by spraying fire-retardant coatings or covering with fire-retardant boards to meet fire resistance requirements.
Steel Structure VS Concrete Structure
| Details | Steel Structure Factory Building | Concrete structure factory building |
|---|---|---|
| Construction period | 3-6 months (fast) | 8-12 months (slow) |
| Span capability | 30 meters or more (Excellent) | Typically less than 15 meters (restricted) |
| Environmental protection | Recyclable (preferred) | There is a lot of construction waste (and it’s of poor quality). |
| earthquake resistance | Good ductility and strong earthquake resistance (excellent) | Highly brittle and relatively weak in earthquake resistance (medium) |
Cost Factors for Steel Structure Factory Buildings
The cost of a steel structure industrial factory building can be affected by following factors:
- Material Costs: Steel price is influenced by various factors such as market supply and demand, fluctuations in raw material prices, etc. Price changes also vary across different countries.
- Construction Costs: Construction costs include labor costs, equipment usage fees, on-site management fees, etc. These costs are mainly affected by project scale, construction difficulty, and regional differences.
- Design and Consultation Fees: Professional service fees for the design and consultation of steel structure industrial buildings are usually closely related to project’s complexity, design requirements, and other factors.
- Additional Costs: Other costs such as taxes, insurance fees, inspection fees, etc., although accounting for a relatively small proportion, still need to be considered within the overall cost.
Steel Structure Industrial Building Advantages
AGICO is deeply involved in China’s modern prefab steel factory building construction and upgrading. We also offer affordable large steel structure members and technical support for building factories and warehouses, helping to build the most durable steel structure buildings for customers.
- Fast construction speed. Compared with traditional reinforced concrete structure factory buildings, steel structure components can be prefabricated in the factory and only require simple assembly on site, which shortens the construction period by 30% to 50%, is less affected by the weather, and enables enterprises to start production and operation more quickly, saving time and costs.
- Flexible spatial layout. With minimal load-bearing walls and columns, the interior allows for flexible division of functional areas according to production needs. It easily accommodates spans exceeding 30 meters, meeting the requirement of a column-free factory interior. Production line layouts can be freely adjusted, and equipment can be added or removed. It also facilitates future heightening, expansion, or dismantling and relocation, adapting to changes at different stages of enterprise development.
- High strength and light weight. Steel has a high strength-to-weight ratio, which can withstand large loads while reducing the load on the foundation. In sites with poor geological conditions, it is easier to meet the structural stability requirements.
- Environmentally friendly. Steel is a recyclable material with a recycling rate exceeding 90%, resulting in less construction waste and aligning with green building trends. Most of the steel can be recycled after the factory is demolished, and the construction process is relatively clean, with less pollution such as dust and noise.
